The present invention relates to a vehicle body structure for preventing water flow into the interior of a vehicle body, and more particularly to a structure which provides a protective cover for preventing water flow into the inside of the vehicle body through an aperture around a door handle.
In a vehicle, a door handle is typically provided on each door for opening and closing by a passenger's operation.
Heretofore, an aperture has been defined between the door handle and an outer door panel forming the outer face of the door. The conventional vehicle body structure is disclosed in FIGS. 2 and 4 which are indicated to be prior art.
As apparent from FIG. 2, an aperture 20A is defined between the lower part of the door handle 3 and the edge of the outer door panel 1. When a vehicle is driven during rainy weather conditions, or washed, water may flow into the inside of the vehicle body through the aperture 20A. Usually, a door lock device L is installed within the door body for locking and unlocking the door. The lock device may be contacted by water which flows into the interior of the door. After the vehicle is parked for a long time outdoors at very low temperatures, as are common during the winter season, the water in the door lock device L may become frozen. This may cause the door lock device L to be at least temporarily inoperable.